The invention relates to methods of identifying compounds that disrupt polypeptide aggregation. The identified compound can be used to treat disorders associated with such aggregation. Huntington""s disease and Alzheimer""s disease are examples of these disorders.
Huntington""s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant, progressive, neurodegenerative disorder associated with selective neuronal cell death, occurring primarily in the cortex and striatum. The disorder is caused by a CAG codon repeat expansion in the first exon of a gene encoding a 350 kD protein, huntingtin, with unknown function (Ambrose et al., Somat Cell Mol. Genet. 20:27-38, 1994). CAG encodes the amino acid glutamine (xe2x80x9cGlnxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cQxe2x80x9d), so CAG repeats encode polyglutamine regions within huntingtin. The polyglutamine region of huntingtin from non-HD individuals contains about 8-31 consecutive Gln residues. Huntingtin with over 37 consecutive Gln residues is associated with mild to severe HD, with the more severe cases exhibiting a polyglutamine region of up to about 68 Gln residues.
In addition to HD, at least six other inherited neurodegenerative disorders have been found to be associated with CAG expansions. Increasing the length of CAG repeats in the coding region of unrelated genes, and resulting polyglutamine regions in the encoded proteins, causes a similar pattern of neuron degeneration, indicating a similar, if not identical, mechanism of cell death. HD may be caused by abnormal protein-protein interactions mediated by elongated polyglutamines.
The invention is based, in part, on the discovery of a method for identifying compounds that disrupt the aggregation of polypeptides. These compounds are potentially useful as therapeutics for the treatment of disease conditions associated with such aggregation.
Accordingly, the invention features a method of identifying a compound which disrupts polypeptide aggregation. The method includes: providing a first polypeptide which is labelled with a detection moiety (e.g., an enzyme or a fluorescent protein) that is inactive in the presence of a denaturant, and a second polypeptide (which can be identical to the first), wherein the first and second polypeptides aggregate upon contact; contacting the first polypeptide, the second polypeptide and a test compound to form a mixture; contacting the mixture with the denaturant; and determining the activity of the detection moiety. A decrease in the activity following contact of the mixture with the denaturant indicates that the test compound has prevented at least some of the polypeptides from aggregating, thereby leaving them susceptible to inactivation by the denaturant. Such an outcome suggests that the test compound is a polypeptide aggregation disrupting compound. In the above method, the first or second polypeptide can be immobilized, or they both can be in solution. Alternatively, they can be within a cell, e.g., a cell transfected with a DNA encoding the first polypeptide and/or the second polypeptide. The first and second polypeptides can be identical or different, so long as they aggregate upon contact. The first and second polypeptides can be polypeptides that contain an extended polyglutamine region, beta-amyloid polypeptides, tau proteins, presenilins, alpha-synucleins and prion proteins. Examples of naturally occurring polypeptides that contain extended polyglutamine regions are huntingtin, atropin-1, ataxin-1, ataxin-2, ataxin-3, ataxin-7, alpha 1A-voltage dependent calcium channel, and androgen receptor. Non-naturally occurring polypeptides that contain an extended polyglutamine region are polypeptides which include at least 32 consecutive glutamine residues. In the above method, the detection moiety is preferably a fluorescent protein or an enzyme such as luciferase, and the extended polyglutamine region is preferably at least 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40, 42, 47, 50, 52, 60, 65, 70, 72, 75, 80, 85, 95, 100, 104, 110, 119, 120, 130, 140, 144, 151, 160, 170, 180, 190, 191, 195, 200, 210, 230, 250, 270 or 300 glutamine residues in length.
Alternatively, the method includes: providing a fluorescently labelled first polypeptide, wherein the first polypeptide contains an extended polyglutamine region; providing a second polypeptide containing an extended polyglutamine region; contacting the first polypeptide, the second polypeptide and a test compound to form a mixture; denaturing unaggregated polypeptides in the mixture; and detecting fluorescence, wherein a decrease in fluorescence in the presence of the test compound indicates that the test compound is a polypeptide aggregation disrupting compound. The first and second polypeptides can be naturally or non-naturally occurring polypeptides that have at least 32 consecutive glutamine residues. As above, the first or the second polypeptide can be immobilized or both polypeptides can be in solution. Alternatively, they can be within a cell, e.g., a transfected cell which expresses both polypeptides.
Another method of identifying a compound which disrupts the aggregation of polypeptides containing extended polyglutamine regions includes providing a cell which is genetically modified to express a DNA encoding a heterologous polypeptide containing an extended polyglutamine region; contacting the cell with a test compound; and determining whether the test compound decreases the amount of aggregation of the polypeptide in the cell, wherein a decrease in polypeptide aggregation in the presence of the test compound indicates that the test compound is a polypeptide aggregation disrupting compound. The heterologous polypeptide can be, for example, a fusion protein comprising an antigenic tag or a label. Examples of labels include fluorescent proteins (e.g., a green fluorescent protein (GFP) or a blue fluorescent protein (BFP)) and enzymes. Where the label is a fluorescent protein or other denaturable protein, the step of determining whether the compound is an aggregation disrupting compound includes contacting the cell with a denaturant such as detergent or heat sufficient to effect denaturing of the label portion of unaggregated fusion protein, and detecting fluorescence wherein a decrease in fluorescence following contact of the cell with the denaturant, compared to fluorescence in a similar cell that is treated with the denaturant but not the test compound, indicates that the compound is a polyglutamine polypeptide aggregation disrupting compound. The expression of the DNA can be inducible, e.g., expression can be induced upon exposure of the cell to an inducing agent such as ecdysone or muristerone.
A final method of identifying a compound which disrupts the aggregation of polypeptides includes the steps of providing a cell that is genetically modified to express a DNA encoding a heterologous polypeptide, wherein molecules of the polypeptide spontaneously aggregate within the cell; contacting the cell with a test compound; and determining whether molecules of the polypeptide aggregate in the presence of the test compound, wherein a decrease in aggregation of the polypeptide molecules in the presence of the test compound indicates that the test compound is a polypeptide aggregation disrupting compound. The polypeptide can be a fusion protein comprising a label such as a fluorescent protein (e.g., a GFP or a BFP) or an enzyme. The method can further include contacting the cell with a denaturant such as a detergent or heat, and detecting fluorescence or other activity of the label, wherein a decrease in fluorescence or activity compared to a control not exposed to the test compound indicates that the compound is a polypeptide aggregation disrupting compound.
The invention features a DNA encoding a fusion protein which includes (a) at least 32 contiguous glutamine residues and (b) a label (e.g., a fluorescent protein such as GFP or BFP or an enzyme such as luciferase), wherein the sequence encoding the at least 32 glutamine residues comprises both CAG codons and CAA codons. The CAG and CAA codons can be present as a mixture in the DNA, e.g., containing the sequence CAA CAG CAG CAA CAG CAA (SEQ ID NO:1), e.g., (CAA CAG CAG CAA CAG CAA)n (SEQ ID NO:1), where n can be between 7-300, e.g., n is 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, or 30. The CAG and CAA codons need not be present in equal numbers. For example, CAA could be every third or fourth codon in the polyglutamine-encoding DNA. The CAG and CAA codons can be present in a repeating pattern, or can be a random mixture.
Other possible labels include other florescent proteins, enzymes, and any other protein which can be used to distinguish between aggregated and non-aggregated polyglutamine-containing proteins. The invention further features a cultured, genetically modified cell which expresses the above described DNA, and a method of producing a fusion protein, comprising culturing the genetically modified cell under conditions appropriate for expressing the DNA encoding the fusion protein.
Also within the invention is a fusion polypeptide comprising (a) at least 32 contiguous glutamine residues and (b) a fluorescent protein such as a GFP or BFP. In preferred embodiments, the polyglutamine region contains at least 33 glutamine residues, and more preferably at least 34, 35, 36, 37, 40, 42, 47, 50, 52, 60, 65, 70, 72, 75, 80, 85, 95, 100, 104, 110, 119, 120, 130, 140, 144, 151, 160, 170, 180, 190, 191, 195, 200, 210, 230, 250, 270 or 300.
The invention also features an expression plasmid which (1) includes a DNA sequence which encodes a fusion protein of (a) at least 32 contiguous glutamine residues and (b) a label, wherein the sequence that encodes the at least 32 glutamine residues includes both CAG codons and CAA codons, and (2) is operably linked to an expression control sequence.
An expression control sequence xe2x80x9coperably linkedxe2x80x9d to a coding sequence is placed so that it controls expression of the latter.
An xe2x80x9cisolated DNAxe2x80x9d is a DNA which has a non-naturally occurring sequence, or which has the sequence of part or all of a naturally occurring gene but is free of the genes that flank the naturally occurring gene of interest in the genome of the organism in which the gene of interest naturally occurs. The term therefore includes a recombinant DNA incorporated into a vector, into an autonomously replicating plasmid or virus, or into the genomic DNA of a prokaryote or eukaryote. It also includes a separate molecule such as a cDNA, a genomic fragment, a fragment produced by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), or a restriction fragment. It also includes a recombinant nucleotide sequence that is part of a hybrid gene, i.e., a gene encoding a fusion protein. Specifically excluded from this definition are DNA molecules as they occur in a random library, such as a cDNA or genomic DNA library.
A xe2x80x9cpolypeptidexe2x80x9d is any peptide-linked chain of amino acids, regardless of length or post-translational modification.
An xe2x80x9cheterologous polypeptidexe2x80x9d is defined in reference to a given cell: i.e., it is a polypeptide that is not normally expressed in more than a trace amount within the given cell. A polypeptide with a non-naturally occurring sequence (e.g., the fusion proteins of the invention) is heterologous to all cell types. Even a polypeptide with a naturally occurring sequence (e.g., human huntingtin) would be considered an heterologous polypeptide if it were expressed in a non-human cell, or in a human cell in which it is not normally expressed in more than a trace amount.
An xe2x80x9caggregation-disposed polypeptidexe2x80x9d refers to a polypeptide which aggregates with a second polypeptide when contacted with the latter. The second polypeptide can have the same or a different sequence.
An xe2x80x9cinducing agentxe2x80x9d is an agent that triggers or increases expression of a coding sequence.
The term xe2x80x9clabelxe2x80x9d, as used herein, refers to a detection moiety whose detection properties are altered either (i) directly as a consequence of polypeptide aggregation or (ii) upon exposure to an agent following polypeptide aggregation.
The term xe2x80x9caggregationxe2x80x9d refers to a process whereby polypeptides stably associate with each other to form a multimeric, insoluble complex, which does not disassociate under physiological conditions.
An xe2x80x9cextended polyglutamine regionxe2x80x9d refers to a region of 32 or more (e.g., at least 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40, 42, 47, 50, 52, 60, 65, 70, 72, 75, 80, 85, 95, 100, 104, 110, 119, 120, 130, 140, 144, 151, 160, 170, 180, 190, 191, 195, 200, 210, 230, 250, 270 or 300) consecutive glutamine residues. Polypeptides that contain such regions aggregate upon contact though not necessarily immediately.
A xe2x80x9cconservative amino acid substitutionxe2x80x9d is one in which the amino acid residue is replaced with another residue having a chemically similar side chain. Families of amino acid residues having similar side chains have been defined in the art. These families include amino acids with basic side chains (e.g., lysine, arginine, histidine), acidic side chains (e.g., aspartic acid, glutamic acid), uncharged polar side chains (e.g., glycine, asparagine, glutamine, serine, threonine, tyrosine, cysteine), nonpolar side chains (e.g., alanine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, proline, phenylalanine, methionine, tryptophan), beta-branched side chains (e.g., threonine, valine, isoleucine) and aromatic side chains (e.g., tyrosine, phenylalanine, tryptophan, histidine).
xe2x80x9cPercent sequence identityxe2x80x9d of two amino acid sequences or of two nucleic acids is determined using the algorithm of Karlin and Altschul (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87: 2264-2268, 1990) modified as in Karlin and Altschul (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90: 5873-5877, 1993). Such an algorithm is incorporated into the NBLAST and XBLAST programs of Altschul et al. (J. Mol. Biol. 215: 403-410, 1990). BLAST nucleotide searches are performed with the NBLAST program, score=100, wordlength=12 to obtain nucleotide sequences homologous to nucleic acid molecules of the invention. BLAST protein searches are performed with the XBLAST program, score=50, wordlength=3 to obtain amino acid sequences homologous to an aggregation-disposed polypeptide. To obtain gapped alignments for comparison purposes, Gapped BLAST is utilized as described in Altschul et al. Nucleic Acids Res. 25:3389-3402, 1997). When utilizing BLAST and Gapped BLAST programs, the default parameters of the respective programs (e.g., XBLAST and NBLAST) are used.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. In case of conflict, the present application, including definitions, will control. All publications, patent applications, patents, and other references mentioned herein are incorporated by reference. The materials, methods, and examples are illustrative only and not intended to be limiting. Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description, and from the claims.
The invention is based, in part, on the discovery of a method which can be used to identify compounds which inhibit the aggregation of polypeptides. The aggregation of certain naturally occurring polypeptides is often associated with pathological disorders such as Alzheimer""s disease, Parkinson""s disease and Huntington""s disease. A compound which inhibits aggregation of naturally occurring aggregation-disposed polypeptides can be used to treat a subject at risk for such a disorder.
Polypeptides
The invention includes screening methods which are used to identify compounds which can disrupt the aggregation of aggregation-disposed polypeptides. An aggregation-disposed polypeptide can be a naturally occurring polypeptide or a non-naturally occurring polypeptide.
The aggregation of naturally occurring polypeptides is often associated with pathological disorders. Examples of naturally occurring polypeptides which aggregate include polypeptides which contain extended polyglutamine regions, herein defined to mean at least 32 contiguous glutamine residues. Such polypeptides and their associated disorders are as follows: huntingtin, which is associated with Huntington""s disease; atrophin-1, which is associated with dentatorubralpallidoluysian atrophy; ataxin-1, which is associated with spinocerebellar ataxia type 1; ataxin-2, which is associated with spinocerebellar ataxia type-2; ataxin-3, which is associated with spinocerebellar ataxia type-3; alpha 1a-voltage dependent calcium channel, which is associated with spinocerebellar ataxia type-6; ataxin-7, which is associated with spinocerebellar ataxia type-7; and androgen receptor, which is associated with spinobulber muscular atrophy. Other naturally occurring polypeptides known for their ability to aggregate include the synuclein proteins, namely alpha, beta and gamma synucleins. Synucleins have been implicated in Alzheimer""s disease, Parkinson""s disease and breast cancer. Proteins such as amyloid light chains and amyloid-associated proteins, which are associated with amyloidosis, can also be used in the methods of the invention. Other aggregation-disposed polypeptides include: mutant transthyretin, which is associated with familial amyloid polyneuropathies; beta2 microglobulin, aggregation of which causes complications during chronic renal dialysis; beta amyloid protein, which is associated with Alzheimer""s disease; immunoglobulin light chain, which is associated with multiple myelomas and various other B-cell proliferations; and prion proteins, which cause spongiform encephalopathies like Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and kuru in humans.
Non-naturally occurring, aggregation-disposed polypeptides include variants of naturally occurring polypeptides, as well as polypeptides which do not occur in nature but have the ability to aggregate, particularly where such polypeptides can be used to model naturally-occurring, disease-associated proteins such as huntingtin and beta amyloid protein. These include polypeptides which are engineered to include regions, such as an extended polyglutamine region, which are known to promote polypeptide aggregation.
Naturally occurring polypeptides of the invention can be obtained by isolating and purifying the protein from a natural source. Alternatively, both naturally and non-naturally occurring aggregation-disposed polypeptides can be produced recombinantly or chemically synthesized by conventional methods. An aggregation-disposed polypeptide, full-length or truncated, can also be part of a fusion protein, e.g., the protein can be fused to an antigenic tag such as c-myc or proteinaceous label such as a green fluorescent protein (GFP).
Techniques for generating polypeptides are well known in the art. A typical method involves transfecting host cells (e.g., bacterial cells, insect cells, mammalian cells, or plant cells) with an expression vector carrying a nucleic acid that encodes a polypeptide of interest. The cell in which the recombinant polypeptide is produced can be used directly in the methods of the invention, or the recombinant polypeptide can be purified from the culture medium or from a lysate of the cells.
Variants of the aggregation-disposed polypeptides can also be used in the methods of the invention and can be prepared by substituting selected amino acids in these polypeptides. A variant of an aggregation-disposed polypeptide includes a polypeptide which has high sequence identity (e.g., 60%, 70%, 80%, 90, 95, 96, 97, 98 or 99%) to an aggregation-disposed polypeptide of above and retains the ability to aggregate.
Also useful for the methods of the invention are aggregation-competent portions of the naturally occurring aggregation-disposed polypeptides, e.g., a fragment of a naturally occurring polypeptide containing an extended polyglutamine region or other region that promotes aggregation of the parent protein with copies of itself or with a different protein.
Also included in the invention are aggregation-disposed fusion proteins, e.g., a fusion protein containing an extended polyglutamine region and a green fluorescent protein (GFP) (which term includes enhanced GFP, or xe2x80x9cEGFPxe2x80x9d).
Nucleic Acid Molecules
Isolated nucleic acid molecules that encode naturally occurring, aggregation-disposed polypeptides, variants thereof, or non-naturally occurring aggregation-disposed polypeptides are useful in the methods of the invention. Naturally occurring nucleic acid sequences which encode aggregation-disposed polypeptides are well known in the art, e.g., sequences which encode huntingtin (Genbank accession #NM00211), atrophin-1 (Genbank accession #AF038564), ataxin-1 (Genbank accession #AL00931), ataxin-2 (Genbank accession #AF034373), ataxin-3 (Genbank accession #NM004993), alpha 1a-voltage dependent calcium channel (Genbank accession #AI660731), ataxin-7 (Genbank accession #AI660731), androgen receptor (Genbank accession #AI759506), alpha, beta and gamma synucleins (Genbank accession ##NM003085, AI879167, and NM003087, respectively), amyloid light chain (Genbank accession #AF026929) and amyloid-associated protein (Genbank accession #AF053356). Nucleic acid sequences that encode fragments of naturally occurring, aggregation-disposed polypeptides which retain the ability to aggregate are also useful in the methods of the invention.
In some instances, it may be preferable to generate a non-naturally occurring polypeptide which encompasses a region (e.g., an extended stretch of contiguous glutamine residues) which is known to be involved in polypeptide aggregation. For example, in bacteria the ability to recombinantly produce a polypeptide with an extended polyglutamine region is difficult, possibly because DNA or RNA containing multiple contiguous CAG codons may form secondary structures which affect replication and/or transcription. Whatever the mechanism causing this difficulty, one can overcome it by using a nucleic acid sequence with alternating CAG and CAA codons to encode the polyglutamine region, e.g., alternating CAG and CAA codons or another pattern such as (CAA CAG CAG CAA CAG CAA) n (SEQ ID NO:1), where n can be between 5-300, e.g., n is 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30. The CAG and CAA codons need not be present in equal numbers and need not form a repeating pattern.
Expression Control Sequences and Vectors
Two ways in which the methods of the invention can be carried out are: (i) using a cell which has been genetically modified to express aggregation-disposed polypeptides; and (ii) using purified aggregation-disposed polypeptides.
Typically, expressing an aggregation-disposed polypeptide in a cell involves inserting an aggregation-disposed polypeptide coding sequence into a vector, where it is operably linked to one or more expression control sequences. The need for and identity of expression control sequences will vary according to the type of cell in which the aggregation-disposed polypeptide sequence is to be expressed. Examples of expression control sequences include transcriptional promoters, enhancers, suitable mRNA ribosomal binding sites, and sequences that terminate transcription and translation.
Suitable expression control sequences can be selected by one of ordinary skill in the art. Standard methods can be used by the skilled person to construct expression vectors. See, generally, Sambrook et al., 1989, Cloningxe2x80x94A Laboratory Manual (2nd Edition), Cold Spring Harbor Press.
Vectors useful in this invention include plasmid vectors and viral vectors. Viral vectors can be, for example, those derived from retroviruses, adenovirus, adeno-associated virus, SV40 virus, pox viruses, or herpes viruses. Once introduced into a host cell (e.g., bacterial cell, yeast cell, insect cell, avian cell, or mammalian cell), the vector can remain episomal, or be incorporated into the genome of the host cell. Useful vectors include vectors which can be purchased commercially, e.g., pcDNA 3.1-based vectors can be purchased from Invitrogen, Carlsbad, Calif. pcDNA 3.1-based vectors include the human cytomegalovirus (CMV) immediate-early promoter/enhancer for high level expression in mammalian cell lines, and bovine growth hormone (BGH) polyadenylation signal for efficient transcript stabilization and termination.
To generate a purified preparation of the aggregation-disposed polypeptide for use in the present method, the aggregation-disposed polypeptide can be produced recombinantly in a cell (as described above) and then purified from that cell, or the polypeptide can be made synthetically. Since aggregation-disposed polypeptides aggregate, it may be necessary to take certain steps when producing and isolating the polypeptide so that a soluble, non-aggregated form of the polypeptide can be obtained. For example, it is preferable when producing the polypeptide recombinantly in a cell not to over-produce the polypeptide, as over-production of aggregation-disposed polypeptides in a cell may result in polypeptide aggregation.
Labeling Polypeptides
The aggregation-disposed polypeptides can be chemically coupled to a label or recombinantly expressed as a fusion protein with a label. Examples of labels include various enzymes, fluorescent materials, luminescent materials, and bioluminescent materials. Examples of suitable enzymes include horseradish peroxidase, alkaline phosphatase, xcex2-galactosidase, and acetylcholinesterase; examples of suitable fluorescent materials include umbelliferone, fluorescein, fluorescein isothiocyanate, rhodamine, dichlorotriazinylamine fluorescein, dansyl chloride and phycoerythrin; an example of a luminescent material is luminol; and examples of bioluminescent materials include luciferase, luciferin, and aequorin.
The coupling of a label to a polypeptide of the invention can be carried out by chemical methods known in the art. A variety of coupling agents, including crosslinking agents, can be used for covalent conjugation. Examples of cross-linking agents include N,Nxe2x80x2-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC; Pierce), N-succinimidyl-S-acetyl-thioacetate (SATA), N-succinimidyl-3-(2-pyridyldithio)propionate (SPDP), ortho-phenylenedimaleimide (o-PDM), and sulfosuccinimidyl 4-(N-maleimidomethyl) cyclohexane-1-carboxylate (sulfo-SMCC). See, e.g., Karpovsky et al., J. Exp. Med. 160:1686, 1984; and Liu et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 82:8648, 1985. Other methods include those described by Paulus, Behring Ins. Mitt., No. 78, 118-132, 1985; Brennan et al. Science 229:81-83, 1985, and Glennie et al., J. Immunol. 139:2367-2375, 1987. A large number of coupling agents for polypeptides, along with buffers, solvents, and methods of use, are described in the Pierce Chemical Co. catalog, pages T-155-T-200, 1994 (3747 N. Meridian Rd., Rockford Ill. 61105, U.S.A.,; Pierce Europe B. V., P.O. Box 1512, 3260 BA Oud Beijerland, The Netherlands), which catalog is hereby incorporated by reference.
Fluorescence labeling can be achieved by purifying an aggregation-disposed polypeptide and covalently conjugating the polypeptide to a reactive derivative of an organic fluorophore. Examples of suitable fluorophores include fluorescein, rhodamine, Texas Red, and the like. Fluorescence may be detected by any method known in the art, e.g., using fluorescent microscopy, a fluorometer, or fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS).
Where the label is a protein, e.g., an enzyme or a fluorescent protein, it can be made an integral part of the aggregation-disposed polypeptide by expressing the two together as a recombinant fusion protein, as discussed above. Suitable fluorescent proteins include green fluorescent protein (GFP) and blue fluorescent protein (BFP).
The GPF gene was originally cloned from the jellyfish Aequorea Victoria. It encodes a protein of 238 amino acids which absorbs blue light (major peak at 395 nm) and emits green light (major peak at 509 nm) (Prasher et al., Gene 15:229-223, 1992). GPF genes and functional proteins have been identified in a variety of organisms in the phyla hydrozoa, cnidaria, anthozoa and ctenophora.
Both wild-type GFP and mutated GFP from Aequorea Victoria can be used as a label. The mutation of GFP (e.g., the substitution of certain amino acids in the GFP polypeptide) has been reported to yield GFP proteins with improved spectral properties. For example, mutating serine 65 to a threonine generates a GFP variant which has about sixfold greater brightness than wild-type GFP (Heim et al., Nature 372:663-664, 1995). The coding sequence for an enhanced GFP can be purchased commercially (Clontech, Palo Alto, Calif.).
BPF can also be used as a label. To obtain BFP, tyrosine 66 of GFP is mutated to a histidine. This mutated GFP protein fluoresces bright blue, in contrast to the green of the wild-type protein.
Screening Assays
The invention encompasses methods for identifying compounds that disrupt the aggregation of particular polypeptides, e.g., the aggregation of huntingtin polypeptides. Candidate compounds that can be screened in accordance with the invention include polypeptides, peptide mimetics, antibodies, and monomeric organic compounds, i.e., xe2x80x9csmall molecules.xe2x80x9d In particular, certain classes of compounds may be chosen by one skilled in the art based on knowledge of the mechanism of aggregation of particular aggregation-disposed polypeptides. For example, aggregation of huntingtin polypeptides is believed to be mediated by hydrogen bond formation. Based on this, compounds such as D-amino acid-containing peptides and compounds that compete for H bond formation can be tested by the method of the invention to determine if these compounds function as useful aggregation disrupting compounds.
Labels
To determine if a compound disrupts polypeptide aggregation, a method of detecting the extent to which polypeptides aggregate in the presence of the compound is required. This is accomplished in the methods of the invention by labeling the aggregation-disposed polypeptide with a detection moiety, a detectable property of which changes (i.e., is lost, gained, or changed in character) directly or indirectly, based on whether the polypeptide is in an aggregated state or not. For example, in one embodiment, the property of the detection moiety is eliminated, or at least decreased, as a consequence of aggregation, so that the label on the unaggregated polypeptide exhibits the property while the label on the aggregated polypeptide does not. An example of this would be an enzymatic label which is active only when in an unaggregated state. Alternatively, the inverse can be true. For example, when a denaturant-sensitive label is used, exposure to a denaturant abolishes the detectable property of the label, if the label is linked to a non-aggregated polypeptide. Once the polypeptides aggregate, the detection moiety is protected from the denaturant and retains its detectable property even after treatment with the denaturant. The label can be any denaturant-sensitive detection moiety, e.g., enzymatic or fluorescent.
Where the label is an enzyme, a property of the enzyme, e.g., the ability to catalyze a particular reaction, may alter as a consequence of aggregation. For example, upon aggregation, the enzymatic activity of the label may be eliminated. Thus, the extent of polypeptide aggregation in the presence of the test compound is determined by determining the ability of the enzyme to catalyze the reaction. An increase in the amount of enzyme activity in the presence of the test compound, as compared to a control, indicates that the compound is an aggregation disrupting compound.
Alternatively, the enzyme may be one which is inactivated in the presence of a denaturant. Since aggregation protects the enzyme from denaturing, addition of a denaturant permits one to determine whether the polypeptide linked to the enzyme is aggregated or not. If the amount of enzyme activity is lower in the presence of denaturant and test compound, compared to denaturant alone, the test compound is a putative aggregation disrupting compound.
Where the label is a fluorescent protein, e.g., a GFP, the ability of the fluorescent-labeled polypeptide to fluorescence in the presence of a denaturant following aggregation is determined. For example, when GFP is used as the label, the addition of a denaturant causes the soluble, non-aggregated, GFP-labeled polypeptides to denature, thereby quenching fluorescence. In contrast, aggregated GFP-labeled proteins are sufficiently protected from the denaturant so that the GFP of the aggregated GFP-labeled polypeptides will continue to fluoresce in the presence of the denaturant. Thus, a decrease in fluorescence of the GFP-labeled polypeptide in the presence of denaturant plus test compound, as compared to a control with denaturant alone, indicates that the test compound is an aggregation disrupting compound.
The label can also be a selectable marker, such as an antibiotic resistance marker. In this instance, the aggregation-disposed polypeptide is expressed in a cell as a fusion with a selectable marker, e.g., neomycin phosphotransferase (neo). The aggregation of polypeptides fused to selectable markers in a cell inhibits the ability of the selectable marker to confer antibiotic resistance on that cell during selection. Thus, where a selectable marker is used, the ability of the polypeptides to aggregate in the presence of a compound is determined by measuring cell viability in the presence of a selection agent, e.g., an antibiotic. For example, where the selection marker is neo, the selection agent aminoglycoside G-418 can be used, or where the selectable marker is hygro, the selection agent is typically hygromycin. An increase in cell viability in the presence of a test compound plus selection agent, compared to the selection agent alone, is an indication that the test compound is an aggregation disrupting polypeptide.
Identification of a Compound that Disrupts the Aggregation of Aggregation-disposed Polypeptides
In one screening method of the invention, labeled (e.g., GFP labeled) aggregation-disposed polypeptides are incubated with a test compound of interest. Following a period of time sufficient to permit polypeptide aggregation, the polypeptide/test compound mixture is contacted with a denaturant. The denaturant can be any agent (e.g., heat, urea, guanidine HCL, a detergent such as Triton or sodium dodecyl sulfate, or a mixture thereof) that is able to quench fluorescence of non-aggregated GFP-labeled polypeptides, but which is unable significantly to quench fluorescence of aggregated GFP-labeled polypeptides. The extent of aggregation in the presence of the test compound is determined by measuring fluorescence. Fluorescence can be measured by any method known in the art, e.g., using a fluorometer. A decrease in the amount of denaturant-resistant fluorescence in the presence of the test compound, as compared to a control, is an indication that the test compound is an aggregation disrupting compound.
The above method requires that at least two aggregation-disposed polypeptides are contacted. In this method, both polypeptides can be in solution (e.g., in a cell or in vitro), or alternatively one of the aggregation-disposed polypeptides can be immobilized, e.g., a GST-GFP-labeled aggregation-disposed polypeptide can be immobilized on a polymeric bead or a plastic dish, coated with glutathione.
A variation of the above method involves expressing aggregation-disposed polypeptides in a cell in the presence of a test compound of interest. The cell is transfected with an expression vector containing a nucleotide sequence that encodes a labeled aggregation-disposed polypeptide, and contacted with the test compound. Following a suitable incubation period that permits expression and aggregation of polypeptides within the cell, the cell is contacted with a denaturant, e.g., a detergent, and the function of the label is measured. Where the label is a GFP or BFP, the amount of fluorescence in the cell is measured and compared to a control cell that was not exposed to the test compound. A decrease in fluorescence in a cell exposed to the test compound, as compared to a control cell, is an indication that the test compound disrupts polypeptide aggregation.
The above method can be performed in any cell, such as an immortalized cell, a primary cell, or a secondary cell. Examples of immortalized cells include COS, Chinese hamster ovary (CHO), HeLa, Vero, WI38, HepG2, 3T3, RIN, MDCK, A549, PC12, K562 and 293 cells. Neuronal cells can be used, as well.
Typically, the aggregation-disposed polypeptides are expressed in a cell using an expression vector. A person skilled in the art would be able to choose an appropriate expression vector. For example, expression vectors for use in mammalian cells ordinarily include an origin of replication and a promoter located in front of the gene to be expressed. A polyadenylation site and transcriptional terminator sequence are preferably included. Ribosome binding sites and RNA splice sites may also be included. An example is the SV40 late gene 16S/19S splice/donor acceptor signal. The promoter in the expression vector can be a constitutive promoter or an inducible promoter. Preferably, expression of the aggregation-disposed polypeptide is under the control of an inducible promoter. Commercially available inducible expression systems can be used, e.g., the ecdysone-inducible expression system (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, Calif.; see example section).
A vector which expresses the aggregation-disposed polypeptides may be introduced into cells by a variety of physical or chemical methods, including electroporation, microinjection, microprojectile bombardment, calcium phosphate precipitation, and liposome-, polybrene-, or DEAE dextran-mediated transfection. Alternatively, infectious vectors such as retroviral, herpes, and adenovirus-associated vectors can be used to introduce the DNA.
Administration of the Polypeptide Aggregation Disrupting Compound
Once a given compound is found to have aggregation-disrupting activity in one of the above screening methods, it can be tested for safety and efficacy in an animal model (if there is one) for the disease(s) associated with the aggregation-disposed polypeptide, or in a human susceptible to the disease.
Administration of the compound to a subject (e.g., a human) may be by any known technique. The compound can be administered to a subject by oral ingestion, intravenous injection, intramuscular injection, intrathecal injection, or bronchi-nasal spraying. The invention also pertains to a pharmaceutical composition of the aggregation disrupting compound. The composition includes the compound in a therapeutically effective amount sufficient to inhibit (i.e., decrease) the aggregation of the target polypeptides in cells of the patient, and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier. A xe2x80x9ctherapeutically effective amountxe2x80x9d refers to an amount effective, at dosages and for periods of time necessary, to achieve the desired result. A therapeutically effective amount of the compound may vary according to factors such as the disease state, age, sex, and weight of the individual. Dosage regimens may be adjusted to provide the optimum therapeutic response. A therapeutically effective amount is also one in which any toxic or detrimental effects of the compound is outweighed by the therapeutically beneficial effects.
One factor that may be considered when determining a therapeutically effective amount of a compound is the concentration of the target polypeptide in a biological compartment of a subject, such as in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) or brain of the subject. For example, the concentration of natural beta-amyloid protein in the CSF has been estimated at 3 nM (Schwartzman, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 91:8368-8372, 1994). A non-limiting range for a therapeutically effective amount of a beta amyloid aggregation disrupting compound in the CNS is 0.01 nM-10 xcexcM. It is to be noted that dosage values may vary with the severity of the condition to be alleviated.
As used herein, xe2x80x9cpharmaceutically acceptable carrierxe2x80x9d includes any and all solvents, dispersion media, coatings, antibacterial and antifungal agents, isotonic and absorption delaying agents, and the like that are physiologically compatible. Preferably, the carrier is suitable for parenteral administration. More preferably, the carrier is suitable for administration into the central nervous system (e.g., intraspinally or intracerebrally). Pharmaceutically acceptable carriers include sterile powders, aqueous solutions and dispersions, for example, water, ethanol, polyol (for example, glycerol, propylene glycol, liquid polyethylene glycol, and the like), and suitable mixtures thereof.